Crown Resorts has this morning announced that Steve McCann will be stepping down as CEO of Crown Resorts and Crown Melbourne, with current Wynn Macau Resort COO Ciarán Carruthers to be appointed the new CEO of Crown Resorts, subject to probity approval. The position encompasses overall responsibility for Crown Melbourne, Crown Perth, Crown Sydney, Crown London Aspinalls and Crown’s online business.
Crown announced Carruthers will commence his new position in September and will work through a transitionary period with Mr McCann. Crown says that further senior appointments including the CEO of Crown Melbourne and CEO of Crown Perth will be announced in due course.
The appointment comes in the wake of the recent acquisition of Crown by the Blackstone Group. Head of Real Estate Australia for Blackstone, Chris Tynan, said, “We thank Steve for his leadership over the last 13 months, including implementing a strong reform and remediation plan and improving the culture of Crown Resorts. We wish the best for him as he pursues other opportunities.
“Blackstone is committed to investing in Crown, helping it realise its true potential as a world-class leader in travel and leisure. Part of that involves bringing in global expertise to complement the existing skills within the business. Ciarán Carruthers is a highly experienced and respected industry veteran who shares our commitment to continuing the transformation at Crown and delivering an exceptional experience for all visitors.”
Steve McCann said, “I am incredibly proud of what has been achieved at Crown over the past 13 months, through the tireless efforts of our 20,000 team members who have laid the foundations for Crown’s next chapter.
“I came into this role at a very challenging time for Crown and I will leave Crown proud that we have made a positive impact on the future of this business. I’d like to thank the hardworking Board members of Crown who have provided me tremendous support, as well as every member of the team who has contributed their important part.
“Crown is an incredible place – from its properties to its product and its people. It has been an honour to be part of the team and I look forward to seeing Crown’s continued success as part of the Blackstone family and under the stewardship of Ciarán, who have my full support in their vision to help Crown realise its full potential.”
Beginning his Macau career at Galaxy Entertainment Group in September 2002, Carruthers was Chief Operating Officer of Galaxy’s first property, Waldo casino, from its July 2004 opening, followed by three years in the same role at Galaxy’s then-flagship property StarWorld, which opened in October 2006.
He left Galaxy in 2009 to pursue consulting work in the industry. The likeable Irishmen’s clients included Sands China Limited, and this ultimately led to his appointment as SVP & Director Operations Venetian Resort and Plaza Casino from 2013 to 2016, before joining Wynn as Chief Operating Officer of Wynn Macau Resort from January 2017 until now.
Carruthers said, “I have been following Crown’s journey for some time now and am excited to join the company at a significant moment in its history. The reform, remediation and cultural transformation that have occurred under Steve’s leadership have been extraordinary, and I would like to congratulate him and his team for what they have achieved to date. I am committed to continuing that important work to ensure Crown achieves its ambition to be a world-leader in the delivery of safe and responsible gaming.
“I am extremely passionate about our industry and providing customers with exceptional entertainment and hospitality experiences. I have stayed at Crown many times and know how dedicated and customer-focused its people are, and I’m looking forward to working closely with them, along with the governments, regulators, unions and customers as Crown enters this new era.
“On a personal level, my family has called Australia home for nearly 20 years, and it has always been close to my heart. We are looking forward to beginning this new chapter in Melbourne.”
Crown has also announced a range of key Board Director appointments. These included the appointment of Bill McBeath as Chairman of the Crown Resorts Limited Board. McBeath was most recently CEO of The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas. Crown has also announced today that John Borghetti AO has been appointed Chairman of the Crown Sydney Board. Borghetti spent eight years as CEO and Managing Director of Virgin Australia and is on the board of a number of companies including Alinta Energy and Brisbane Airport Corporation. Yet another board appointment sees John Van Der Wielen become Chairman of Burswood Limited. Van Der Wielen was previously CEO of HBF Health, a leading Australian not-for-profit health provider, and serves on the Boards of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, and the Advisory Board of the University of Western Australia’s Business School.
Crown also announced today that additional Board appointments, all of which are subject to probity review and approval, will be made in due course and that they will reflect “Blackstone’s commitment to diversity on its portfolio company boards.”
The appointment of Carruthers comes just 13 months after McCann first joined Crown Resorts on 1 June 2021 with the challenging task of transforming Crown’s corporate culture in the wake of the damning Bergin Inquiry in NSW.
Since then, Crown has undergone two further inquiries in Victoria and Western Australia – both of which found the company unsuitable to hold a casino license but each granting Crown a two-year window to reform itself under the watch of a special monitor.
More recently, the NSW regulator, the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority (ILGA), granted Crown permission to launch casino operations at its AU$2.2 billion (US$1.49 billion) Crown Sydney development. That rare regulatory win came just weeks before the company was acquired by US private equity giant The Blackstone Group in an AU$8.9 billion (US$6.0 billion) deal.
While Carruthers arrives during a period of significant evolution for the company, he will still have major hurdles to clear, with the company having recently been fined AU$80 million (AU$54.2 million) by Victoria’s new casino regulator – and potentially facing further disciplinary action – for past failings around its responsible gambling measures, or lack thereof.
Nevertheless, he brings significant industry experience with him – much of it gained in the world’s largest casino market of Macau. A veteran of 33 years in the industry, Carruthers has been in leadership roles in Macau integrated resorts for the past 20 years.
Aside from his 33 years in the industry, Carruthers also brings something far less tangible – an amiable character and a conciliatory management style. Given the bridges Crown needs to mend with the government of Victoria and the people of Melbourne, this could prove a vitally important asset.
